The Market Mission
by fuu-nk
Summary: SasuSaku. Oneshot. He knew he heard everything right. He just had to do strategic market thinking. And quickly decide which flavor of box to pick.


**A/N:** HELLOOOO! HELLOOOO! I know I have been inactive since like 2006 or 2007! That's 4-5 years! I'm super deeply sorry for the hiatus of my story (and stories which I have not posted either). I got so busy with college I had no time to post or create anything. LOL. Enough with the excuses.

As a small gift to everyone, here's a short simple oneshot I made. Sorry if there's any out of character. I have not written for the longest time. Lolz. Well, hope you enjoy~ _fuu-nk_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did, I would have turned myself into one awesome ninja and be married to Kakashi. Rawr.

**The Market Mission**

It was another bright sunny morning in Konoha. People were busy bustling and moving around the village tending to their own businesses. The sun was high up in the sky, the clouds are fluffy white signalling a rain-less day ahead, with little birds chirping in the background and the sounds of footsteps around the market.

Amidst the busy crowd or sea of Konoha citizens, a certain black haired ninja was seriously crouched over a stall. Sharp obsidian eyes scanned through boxes and boxes of goods. He was certain he caught what the main points of the conversation were a while ago. He was certainly certain. Of course, being an Uchiha, he does not listen to idle chatter and would only zone in his ears to listen for the important bits. He was ninja for one. He has good – scratch that, great – no, scratch that again – superb listening skills. And the Uchiha part mentioned earlier was the second point. Hence, his listening skills are super duper superb in quite humble way.

But his inner musings on defending and reasoning out his oh-so-awesome listening skills did not in the least way help him in remembering what he ought to remember. Onyx still scanned through the various boxes, unsure of which he should pick. He was fairly certain he was going to get an ear-load of profanities if he brought back the wrong package.

With a huge sigh, the raven-haired nin closed his eyes and tried his second attempt at remembering, and perhaps a little bit more of analysis.

'_This is just like any mission. I just have to clear my mind and strategically think things through.'_

He mentally checked the boxes once again as he opened his eyes. So there're five types of boxes. He did a double check and absently nodded_. 'Yeah. Five. Therefore, the probability of getting the right box is 20%.'_ But he could not succumb to that easy thinking right away. He had to reduce the probability further by applying his related learning experience on daily life. He was certain that Caramel was not part of the option. It was too sticky for her liking. Apple and Cranberry sounded a bit off, though they both love apples, he doesn't think this has any appeal in that boxed-form it is now.

'_So it's down to three. Hn.'_ So deep into his musings he has absently started to tap his foot, fold his arms and knit his eyebrows. He stared at the offending box of Honey & Nut. He was certain he should have eliminated this first. The box seemed to stare back at him and mock him for his stupidity. Clearly she would not like Honey, especially at this point in time. And he also had this creeper hatred for bees ever since he got stung by them when he was little. And bees meant honey. And _Honey_ was clearly and boldly printed in that box glaring at him. He glared back with utmost intensity. He was not one to back down.

After some few minutes, he realized the box was not worth his glare and finally saw it was pointless. He was brought back to his dilemma. But now gladly had only two types left. He brought the probability up to 50% and he felt his pride grow. However, his anxiety seemed to have increased tenfold even. He felt eager to finish this 'mission' and wanted to waste time no more. He had to decide.

He looked back from Chocolate Brownie to Strawberry & Yoghurt. Then back to Chocolate Brownie. Then back to Strawberry & Yoghurt. With frustration etched on his face, his eyes kept darting back and forth the two boxes. This being a crucial decision-making point in his life, the Uchiha failed to notice the loud call for his name amongst the crowd.

Naruto was out in the busy streets of Konoha, walking along the crowded path in his bubbly and bouncy feet. He was running through the grocery list he have in his hand which Hinata had told him to fetch for the meal she was to prepare.

'_Carrots, potatoes, beans, beans, more vegetable, broccoli, another vegetable yeah, yeah, AND another vegetable. Are we FRIGGIN' GOING VEGAN?'_ His eyes went wide when all he saw were veggies up on the list.

'_Oh. Here's fish and meat. HAHAHA!' _He breathed a sigh of relief. He was certain he was not going to go vegan anytime even if it granted him the powers of Vegan Academy like that guy from the movie they saw the night before. _'Was that Scott Pilgrim? Yeah. Scott PG or sumtin'. Weird name.'_

His eyes grew bright and a large smile plastered on his face when he saw the last word on the list. He really loves Hinata. The last word read 'Cup Ramen.'

As the blonde male lifted his eyes from the list, he caught a glimpse of white and black and some red among the sea of people, just around 300 meters from where he is. He recognized the male standing in front of some stall selling random boxes of things. He thought it weird to see the Uchiha standing in front of a stall like that. He was fairly certain the Uchiha is a man of principle and honor, even if he has betrayed the village only to be dragged back by him, he knew Sasuke would not risk having himself seen in front of something that could be used against him.

And being the loud and extremely expressive blonde person he is, he approached the stall and called out his bestfriend_slash_rival's name.

"Oie Sasuke!"

Uchiha Sasuke has finally made his decision. He lifted the filthy things which made him lose his composure and handed them to the store owner.

"I'm taking it."

"I'm glad you have finally stopped trying to glare daggers at my goods young man." The beardy old store owner chuckled as he took a paper bag and placed the items inside. "You have been giving my boxes 10 full minutes of odd staring and speculation. But I believe you have not quite made the final decision yet, seeing as you have bought two."

The Uchiha looked offended for a flash of a second but gained his composure quickly. "I needed both." He replied simply. The old man need not know what was going through his mind and the mind-battle he had just minutes ago.

"I see. I hope you'd consume these and work yourself out! I know you're shinobi and all but may I say these are really effective. Especially if coupled with exercise, if you know what I mean." He raised his eyebrows suggestively at the young man.

Sasuke merely shrugged his shoulders and paid for his purchase.

It was at this moment that Naruto arrived and exclaimed jubilantly his thoughts.

"Oie bastard! You deaf or what! Been calling your name like 2 minutes ago but you sounded weirdly concentrated on those boxes so I decided to approach you. So wassup!" Naruto was really one for long sentences. The Uchiha, on the other hand, just stared back. "Hn."

"So, watcha doing with those two boxes? It's like you're deprived or planning something."

"None of your problem dobe." Sasuke snapped back, albeit not really in a cruel tone. He was Uchiha Sasuke; he's always one for short and curt sentences.

But Naruto is also Naruto, and he is not one to be shoved away. Raising both hands, Naruto replied "Hey! Hey! No snapping. I was just being curious seeing you in front of this stall and all."

Even though Naruto was and is Sasuke's best friend, though he'd rather die than say that out loud, the Uchiha was not comfortable of sharing his embarrassment with others. Especially if he knew the dobe would tease him about his lack of accurate listening. So instead of replying, he shooed Naruto away and went about his way back home. And by Uchiha standards, shooing translates as a 'Hn' and an instant puff of smoke.

He was very sure of this. He already spent 30 minutes in going back and forth the market for just these two boxes. He knew there is no way he is going to be wrong. He did strategic thinking and has raised the probability to 100% by buying the last two choices. He does not like losing. No, he's the almighty Uchiha and he dare not tarnish his reputation just because of these measly boxes. He smirked at his brilliance.

Sasuke approached the new Uchiha household _(he still gets that little butterflies and PVCs in his heart when he sees his new home)_ and opened the door. He saw his pink haired teammate happily lounging in front of the television, with both her legs raised up the center table as she was happily watching the show.

Upon the sound of his footsteps entering the living room, the pink haired kunoichi glanced at him and smiled. She stood up and embraced him as he stood by the couch. She looked up, with shiny sparkly expectant eyes looking straight into his obsidian ones.

"Have you bought it?" She smiled all the more.

"Hn. You should reward me for all the trouble I had to go through to get you these." He lifted the purchase up to her face while still holding her around her waist. Sakura excitedly opened the parcel and lifted out the contents.

Inner Sasuke was doing his brilliance pose as usual, but not for long. He was appalled to see Sakura's face distort into a deep frown and disappointment. What has he done wrong? Sasuke was going through everything in his mind again, checking and re-checking if he missed anything. Seeing as he could not arrive at an answer, he looked at her with confusion in his face.

"Is it not what you want?" he silently asked her.

She gave a deep sigh.

The Uchiha male gulped. He was sure the outburst is to follow. And also, he knew that she knew that he knew she was not one to be joked with. Her fury is known as hell in Konoha. He is in Konoha. And heck, he knows that more than anyone.

"So?" he asked again with all the Uchiha gentleness and composure he could muster.

"Mou. Sasuke-kun. I thought you're a person who likes being healthy. I mean, I appreciate the effort but really. I thought you were listening when we talked awhile ago." She ended quietly in a tone seeping with silent humming anger.

"But I was listening." He reasoned. He knew he was doing his Uchiha-ninja way of listening when they were talking though.

"Fine. If you were listening, then tell me EXACTLY what I told you to buy." She challenged him.

Inhaling a deep breath, Sasuke replied, "Cereal bars." He saw a sudden shift in her expression which he could not identify what. He waited patiently for the fury gates to open.

But then, Sakura suddenly started giggling and tried to stifle her laughter by releasing herself from him and sitting back on the couch. Sasuke, on the other hand, was clearly annoyed. He does not know what was funny, or even what his mistake was. So he sat beside her and waited for her to finish her giggling fits.

As Sakura wiped a tear away from her eyes, she said "Sasuke-kun, you CLEARLY did not listen to me." He was about to retort but she beat him to it. "Earlier, I told you to go to the market to buy me food. And I clearly stated I wanted cereals, fruits – strawberries if possible – and a bar of chocolate. I guess you really need to have a list next time. I insisted on it but you refused. Now you have clearly missed and jumbled everything up." And she was back into her giggling, but lesser this time.

Sasuke's eyes widened for a fraction as realization hit him and he recalled the string of words on his mind when he was on his way to the market – **strawberry, chocolate, cereal bar**. He selectively retained only the vital parts, but he missed to add a comma and orderly place words beside each other. He realized his so-called little mission was a failure. He silently let out his own short chuckle as he saw his mistake.

"Let me guess, you did that selective hearing again didn't you?" She smiled when she heard him chuckle lightly again in his own Uchiha way, and affectionately stroked his cheek.

"Yeah. Sorry." He stared into her eyes and gave her a short kiss on her forehead. "I promise I'd listen more attentively next time. And maybe get a list." He added.

She nodded and rested her head on the crook of his neck. "I like that." She smiled again. "And I take your word for that. I don't want Shichi-kun to grow unhealthy with cereal _diet_ bars." At this she stroked her moderately bulging tummy. He glanced down and placed his hand over her tummy, and waited to feel for any sign of life, much like their usual routine in the previous months. Both rested their palms over Sakura's abdomen, and both felt the quick kick the fetus made.

"Owww... This little guy's doing his ninjutsu training already at 7 months." Sakura felt the slight discomfort but giggled and smiled nonetheless.

"Aa." Sasuke closed his eyes. He again felt that quick heartbeat-skip he has been feeling since he has gotten back into Konoha. He previously had difficulty identifying what was going on with him when this happens and even thought of the idea of a disorder. But in the recent years and months, he has come to associate this feeling as happiness. He smiled his small Uchiha smile and whispered into his wife's ear, "Thank you."

Sakura nuzzled her head as a reply and closed her eyes, opting for a quick nap. But before dozing off, she made one more comment just as she closed her eyes.

"But you still have to get me those things tomorrow. Okay?"

"Aa." He kissed her lightly on the head and adjusted both of them on the couch comfortably. And also silently swore that he was going to do more **full** listening with his wife. And that he would do everything to keep his happiness. Keep his _happiness_ safe and happy as well.

And with this last train of thought Uchiha Sasuke dozed off with his wife in his arms.

Unbeknownst to the Uchiha couple, a certain blonde male was loudly blurting out his complaints on the way home of how his bastard-best friend was such a stuck-up-ass and how he was gonna punch him in the face and make him talk sentences more than 4 words. And punch him another time. The blonde thinks this is the best way to make Sasuke be more vocal.

Along his profanities and complaints, he met another blonde equally as loud as him on the road. Being the curious gossip girl the female blonde is, she easily churned the information out of Naruto. With Ino dragging Shikamaru on to somewhere and shouting a quick 'thank you' at the clueless blonde male who has no idea what he has done, no one therefore truly knows what to expect, or what was bound to happen.

The next day, almost all of Konoha has heard that the recently reinstated Konoha nin avenger 4 years ago who is currently ANBU captain but is also currently on leave, is on a diet. And is currently sporting a large flabby tummy due to his inactivity.

Another version added that the Uchiha male plans on getting a liposuction.

And Sasuke was not very pleased when he walked back to the market the following day.

_OWARI~_

**A/N:** I hope you liked it! Please do review~

Thanks a lot!

**fuu-nk**


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